In celebration of the theatrical release of Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, a new CAVE2™ video:
Developed in just a few days using mostly existing models from my Starfighter project (Millennium Falcon, TIE Fighters, Stormtroopers, blasters) as well as a number of interaction scripts (Stormtrooper AI, TIE Fighter AI, blaster effects, lightsaber deflection logic).
The terrain was also reused from my Halloween CAVE2 picture (based on The Rise of Skywalker teaser trailer). That terrain is based on NASA topography scans of Wadi Rum, Jordan where Rise of Skywalker and Rogue One were filmed. Zooming around Google Earth, this seemed to be the specific location the Rey + Kylo Ren fighter scene was filmed.
Halloween 2019
Jedi robe, cloak, belt, and lightsaber from my trip to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge in Orlando on my way back from presenting a paper at SUI 2019 in New Orleans.
For the Halloween photoshoot the terrain, Star Destroyer, and TIE Fighters were placed in the Unity3D scene. However, other than the dust particle effect and the camera projection the scene was otherwise static. Any of the animations and interactions would be added in December.
Some of the new elements specifically built for this video was the Imperial Lambda Shuttle. Which I has started a while back, but didn't finish. I completed enough of the exterior and a bit of the interior and boarding ramp for use in this scene.
Existing model: December 16, 2019
Additional front and boarding ramp details: December 17, 2019
Other additions to the Millennium Falcon 3D model since my last post. The backlog is due to writing and presenting my PhD preliminary examination on December 2, 2019 followed by scrambling to work on a CAVE2 image for the 40th anniversary of Star Trek: The Motion Picture and finally The Rise of Skywalker theatrical release on December 19, 2019.
During this update my Blender project timer surpassed 200 hours! That's 200 active hours working on this Millennium Falcon model from basic exterior, interior layout, and exterior details since December 2015.
I've been working on the last major exterior section of the ship: the very detailed mechanical panels on top of the engine section. Reference for this part is a mix of technical drawings and mostly pictures of the large studio model.
Engine Panel Detail: August 28, 2019
Engine Panel Detail: August 31, 2019
Engine Panel Detail: September 2, 2019
Engine Panel Detail: September 9, 2019
Even with the mesh mirrored, this is probably one of the most detailed and visually impressive models I've done to date.
Completed Engine Panel Details: September 10, 2019
Uploading a backlog of progress from the last year.
Side equipment bay details: November 1, 2018
Cockpit armor plating: April 21, 2019
X-Wing landing gears: August 7, 2019
Cockpit tunnel armor plating: August 24, 2019
The edge equipment panels that surround the middle section of the Millennium Falcon was modeled based on a number of resources. Most of the equipment panels on the front-starboard side are based on screencaps or production photographs of the actual physical Millennium Falcon exterior set as seen in The Empire Strikes Back and The Force Awakens. Some were based on photos of the studio model from one of the museum tours.
The remaining panels were designed based on existing 3D models of the Millennium Falcon from various games such as Star Wars Galaxies: Jump to Lightspeed and Battlefront (2015).
Some panels like the one pictured below is actually derived from a production screenshot of the VCX-100 model (i.e. The Ghost from Star Wars: Rebels) used in Rogue One. This segment will eventually be used for my 3D model of the Ghost, but modified versions of the mesh was used to fill out the sections of the Millennium Falcon where I didn't have good reference material - mainly on the port side of the ship.
